Missions is It!

God wants His people to partner with Him in the process of redeeming our lost world. Much of the Old Testament reports on His efforts to get the Israelites to be His "priestly nation" and "a light to the nations." But they kept forgetting His purpose in calling them together in the first place, despite the prophets He sent to remind them, as summarized by Stephen in Acts 7. Finally, Jesus came as Savior, but God's idea of having His people work with Him in the redemption process remained unchanged. The Book of Acts records how the church Jesus started became empowered by the Holy Spirit to tell of God's love far and wide. But His original intent is the same-He wants to be in a relationship with all the peoples of the world, and He wants us to help make it happen. This is missions, and it is the uniting theme of the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation. Here's a shorthand way to express it:

Missions is not part of the church program.